Katekyou Hitman Reborn!

Hitman Reborn was initially recommended to me by my friend. However the story looked dull and uninteresting to me, and I was also not sure if I would like it (I watch anime like Bleach, DGrayMan etc.) Thus I started off with the manga. The first thing I thought when I read the manga was "WTH is with that stupid looking baby? The main character is also so badly drawn!" However, after reading a few chapters, I got hooked and finished 100+ chapters in a day. I decided to give the anime a try, as I wanted to see how well the characters could be ... brought to life.

Story:
The only thing that prevented me from giving a 10/10 was that the story took waaaaaaay too long to start! Sure, the first 20 episodes were amusing and had me cracked up, but there was no real storyline to it. The anime was also inferior to the manga in my opinion, as they had more fillers and also took out the guns and knives (and Tsuna's reactions to them) that would have made the whole thing even more hilarious. However after that the real action starts, which had me hooked all the way! The storyline is extremely unique, and Tsuna's irritating underwear transformation thing became less frequent, and finally disappeared altogether :D It is also way different from most shonen anime, which usually only consists of blind fighting and no development at all. In all, an amazing storyline! (After the first 20 episodes, that is, but don't skip till there, have a look at the characters!) :DD

Art:
I would give it an 8/10, as the characters in my opinion were not very well drawn. The characters usually look fine, however weird if shown from different angles. However the animation was okay, the fighting scenes were well animated, and I especially enjoyed looking at Tsuna's weird faces whenever Reborn is up to his antics again x)

Sound:
In my opinion the OPs were the BEST! Drawing days (First OP) had me addicted the first time I listened to it. Except for OP3 (Jumping Days I think), I just didn't like it at all D: The voices for the characters in my opinion were well matched and I just loooooooove them, but Tsuna's voice is still a little weird to me (Too high I guess). The BGM, however, was AMAZING. It totally brings out the mood in whatever is happening and will have you paying attention to it in spite of the action going on! Each character's theme was also awesome, especially Hibari and Gokudera's theme.

Character:
In all, the characters were what makes Reborn a kickass anime! :DDDD It is amazing how some characters who only appeared for comic reliefs could get so serious and awesome whenever they needed to! The way the characters have matured is the main factor that kept me hooked onto the series. The transitioning is so subtle, you wouldn't even notice how much they've grown until you think back and remember how they used to be (Remember whiny old Tsuna?) The different personalities that match each of the characters and the way they follow such an unlikely boss is truly cool! :DDDD

Enjoyment:
I enjoyed Reborn as a whole, except for the first 20 episodes (It's TWENTY hello) but the storyline and arcs later on made up for it, and also the character's ridiculous antics which really give the series a light feeling, yet serious when needed.

Overall, if you're looking for a new anime to watch, try Hitman Reborn! It may seem boring at first, but persevere on! Until the main story starts, there is a good chance that you'll be hooked too :D And the storyline is amazingly unique, I've never seen any anime like it before xD

Katekyo Hitman Reborn is an outstandingly well made anime. I definitely recommend that you watch it if comedy and action applies to your genre of choice.

At first glance, Katekyo Hitman Reborn may seem boring. The major flaw of the anime is that it absolutely misleads you, and it completely deceives you into either a) dropping the anime or b) thinking the anime is lame, when it isn't!
The first 20 episodes may mislead you to drop the anime, just like it misled me, because of its fillerlike episodes. You will most likely tell yourself "Wow, this is really lame. What's the point of all this?" ... That's what I thought, but I gave it a chance. (And I'm SO glad I did. Katekyo Hitman Reborn is now my absolute favorite anime.)

The beginning is kind of slow and different from the rest of the later episodes, because apparently KHR was initially meant to be a gag anime - it was supposed to be something funny and comedic. The anime took a different turn as you progress to episode 20 into something more serious.

The first 20 episodes is merely a /long/ introduction to the anime. It's worth watching though, because you get to be familiar with all the characters. They are all likeable! If you decide to watch Katekyo Hitman Reborn (and I hope you will!) you should decide whether you like it or not, after 25 episodes or so. It's only fair, right? All animes have their flaws; and it's flaw, in my opinion is that they don't give it a decent start. If you do not have the patience for that, then this anime may not be for you.

Storyline:
Katekyo Hitman Reborn deals with the mafia. Tsuna, the *main* character, is in the next line to be the 10th boss for the Vongola Family~ (one of the many families in the mafia.) Reborn, a hitman, and also a baby (hehe), travels from Italy to Japan to tutor Tsuna to become a worthy boss for the Vongola Family.
From then on, Tsuna's adventures and what he experiences are endless-- but they're all interesting. Over the course of the anime, Tsuna grows and matures, and becomes really strong; fighting his enemies and getting stronger each fight he experiences. The fights he encounters are well made, and they WILL keep you at the edge of your seat. Tsuna isn't the only one fighting, though-- he also has a "family"-- his comrades, if you will, and the battles they encounter are endless.

Art:
The art is well made; I don't think there is much to complain about it.
It isn't outstandingly good, nor is it horribly bad to a point where you have to shield your eyes. The characters are wonderfully drawn and are all unique in their own ways. The art progressively gets better as you further get into the anime.

Sound:
The sound is absolutely AMAZING. It deserves an 11/10, as opposed to a 10/10.
I loved all of the openings, and endings-- I never once had to skip it; and that's kind of rare, considering the fact that I'm absolutely picky with my music.
The soundtrack is amazing as well, there is a couple of them for EACH character (well, the main characters, anyways.)
They have a soundtrack for every different scene in the anime, and it is absolutely positively pleasing to the ears. Everything about it is EPIC!

Character:
The characters are very well portrayed; you can't help but love all of them (well most of them anyways.) They change greatly over the course of the anime and it's worthwhile to watch them grow up.

Enjoyment:
I love Katekyo Hitman Reborn! I love everything about it; it makes me laugh until I fall off my seat and look like a loser, it makes me sad as they go through their hard times, it makes me happy as they overcome their obstacles-- and so on.
I can ramble on forever about how much I love the anime, but I'm going to end now, before I end up typing a ten page paper.

Overall:
Katekyo Hitman Reborn is an AMAZING anime as I mentioned a billion times (well not really, but let's pretend.) I highly suggest that you go off and watch it right now, but I can't tell you what to do. It's ultimately up to you.
Everything about it is amazing- it's storyline, (although it may seem boring at first) it's art, it's sound, it's characters-- it's everything!

Story - 8

Hitman Reborn is a pretty unique anime in my opinion. There is one major flaw in the story that prevents me from giving it a full 10. The first 20 episodes or so have no real story arc. While each episode is interesting and helps develop the characters it takes way too long for the story to truly begin. But I will say this. The story arc in this anime is top notch. Once you get to episode 20+ you will be watching the episodes one after another after another. I am anxiously biting my fingernails waiting for the next episodes to be ... subbed!

Art - 8

The artwork in Hitman Reborn is decent. The lame underwear morph on every episode for a while is what brings the grade down a bit, but Tsuna begins to look awesome about 25 episodes in, when the underwear morph becomes not so common and is replaced by something else. The other characters are also drawn very well.

Sound - 9

The soundtrack for Hitman Reborn is awesome both opening and ending songs. The japanese voices all fit the characters as well. The only reason sound isn't a 10 is because of Tsuna's voice in underwear mode. It gets so annoying during the few long sequences.

Characters - 10

The Characters are all unique, with a wide range of personalities all following an unlikely protagonist. Quite frankly i'm jealous of Tsuna. Hes got the perfect range of friends all with flaws that fit the characters as well as strong loyalty to him. The characters couldn't be more enjoyalble. (Save for Tsuna in underwear mode) (Lets face it Underwear mode sucks >.> Thankfully it practically disappears entirely once the true story arc starts.)

Enjoyment - 8

Unfortunately Hitman Reborn loses 2 points here because of how long it takes to get rolling. It seriously has much too long of an introduction phase. If I were to rewatch Hitman Reborn I would start around episode 15 or so. That way you can get a memory of the characters before the story starts. You wont miss practically anything and you'll be loving Hitman Reborn from the start.

Overall - 9

Overall Hitman Reborn gets a 9. It truly is an awesome anime that will keep you hungering for more once it gets rolling.

“WHAT THE HECK IS WITH THAT LITTLE CHIBI DUDE?” I thought to myself when I watched the first episode of Kateikyoushi Hitman Reborn! aka Katekyo Hitman Reborn. What was with the really silly protagonist? Why was he such a wimp and loser? And what was with his weird “transformation?” It’s so bloody revolting and crazy. I thought that the anime was on crack… Seven months later, I took the advice of a friend and decided to give this anime a second chance.

After the second episode and a bit of my own research for random other information and media of the series, I fell in ... love. I also was VERY addicted. I became current with the series in four days; I even endured a rough night and watched 20episodes in one sitting. Anyways, arhem. Let me go into further detail of how my fanaticism for this series began.

Okay, well, I actually thought the first few episodes were rather ridiculous, still. I kept on watching them, though. I mean, who can turn down a Mafia-based anime, anyway? Episodes, nevertheless, turned out to be so incredibly ridiculous that I just had to watch more and more because of the hilarity and comedy I found within the first twenty episodes. To my surprise, I really could not give up on any of the “Filler” episodes or beginning episodes because I was already hooked on the craziness of the series. And although the beginning got way too episodic and “lame” (e.g. like Bleach, D. Gray-Man, and Naruto), I did not give up hope for the series to improve and for the story to develop. The beginning helped create a very fine atmosphere and background for the lifestyles of the protagonists. Once the plot began to reach its first “arc,” or main story, I was amazed by the sudden turn of events. It was a very pleasant surprise to find the main characters undertaking actions to carrying out a rather “dangerous task.” After the arc finishes, there are a couple “Filler” episodes but, they do not entirely intend to act as such because they do develop towards the next arc. The second arc is full of great action and thrill. As of right now, it is still underway. And, as I write this review, I am very anxious to watch more!

EDIT: Wanted to revise this a bit... since I've watched 42more episodes... my impressions of the anime have slightly changed... I'm still a die-hard fan of the series, I have to say... the storyline has indeed slowed down after the second arc, and well... Filler episodes became a bit more trivial and useless... Regardless, it's been on track again to a third arc for the last few episodes. And yet the annoying thing is that, as some people have said, there's always a flashback to what's happened so far... Like from in Bleach. And so, the plot has slowed down tremendously... The characters are still very original and entertaining to observe in developments, though... All other aspects are still very true, though. :P So be sure to keep with this series for it's uniqueness in many other aspects and well general theme. :P

Another reason why I love this series is obviously because of the character development and portrayal. The characters are all just so amazing and cool in their own special ways. Each character possesses a unique and different personality from every other character. From the first impressions of each character, I was rather disgusted. But upon learning more about each character in time, I grew to love each and every character because they each had a special charm or trait that seemed very personal and almost real. I felt very connected to several characters. Furthermore, the character development was not slow at all. Okay, there were a couple cases where the character flash-backs got a bit tedious to watch, but there were sufficient amounts of information to obtain in the meanwhile, so I was not too frustrated with them. Then, information given about the characters were developed into the story in a rather formal and thorough manner which I felt was effective for letting me know about each character. As for a few characters, I have felt (and sometimes still feel) a bit irked by them and their funky and somewhat “naturally” irritating personalities. However, as the story has progressed, I want to say that the characters have grown on me. And now, I appreciate the existence of every one of the characters, and hope to watch (and read) more about them all.

What also helped me get more into the anime was the animation. Initially, I found it a bit funky, but I watched more and began to realize it was actually pretty impressive. The graphics have been, for the most part, to my standards at least, above par. Everything was quite thoroughly illustrated and never too flashy, abrupt, and messed up. Action scenes were detailed and well scripted and screened. The art styles were well designed, too. I found that the characters and settings did not lack too many details from the original artwork.

Now as for the music… I loved all the sounds! <3
As in, I have listened to the soundtracks and opening and ending theme songs of the series so many times that I think it may be too excessive. I don’t recall too much insert music, but that does not take away from the series since the other sound effects and background music have suited well for all the situations and scenarios of the anime. Sometimes, the music gets a bit wacky, but those are obviously for the funny situations that are in the anime. For the fight scenes, there is more than reasonable usage for action music. Thrills and suspense are well built into scenarios due to the special styles of background music used. Special other sounds are also very appropriated “placed” throughout the series. From the countless times I’ve listened to each and every theme song used, I still cannot get enough of the fabulousness of each song. I enjoyed the opening theme songs so much that I had to watch them all for every episode that I watched in the last four days. Now, yes as much of a waste of time that might have been, I could not get enough of it. The “shot” selections used during the theme songs were neither that great nor that terrible, but I found that they worked fine. And, as long as the songs are good and the shots used are not that revealing nor weird, I could deal with it.

Altogether, I found that the animation company that produces this series was able to pull through every episode very well. I did not feel like they wasted much of my watching time at all because everything seemed at least 25% relevant to the story if not also sparked my interest in watching more. Really, I felt that the plot has moved at a very steady pace that still stirs anxiety and curiosity because of major cliffhangers. I cannot get enough of this series. This is one amazing manga series that has been adapted into an anime that has lead me to enjoy the story in a very wonderful and exciting way. For a load of laughter, adventure, and action, be sure to give this anime a try.

Amazing anime. Will make you laugh, smile, shout and cry..
Just DON'T judge the anime by the first 20 episodes. Watching till 20 I was ready to quit a few times, but i read some good reviews so i kept watching. If you cant stand them at all, DONT skip em! Just be patient. These episodes are to introduce some of the characters, and of course make you laugh a lot!
The only drawback of this anime (personal opinion) is it's art. Sometimes characters' and backgrounds' art aren't good at all, since the detail is too low.
"So why should i watch it then?" you ... may ask, the answer is simple: Just give it a try and you will understand why I'm giving it a big 9/10 no matter the drawbacks mntioned above!

Katekyo Hitman Reborn, commonly referred to simply as Hitman Reborn, is the comedic story of Sawada Tsunayoshi (Tsuna) and his training in fulfilling his duty as the 10th generation leader of the famous Vongola Mafia Family. Though this is a story about mafia families and such, by no means is it all dead serious as you expect mafia-themed plots to be (i.e. Gungrave). Quite the contrary, this is a comedy anime and is a very hilarious show.

Tsuna is trained by Reborn, a very well-known hitman throughout the mafia world, but the catch here is that Tsuna is your everyday klutz who ... has no good qualities about him, hence his nickname, "No good Tsuna," and also not to mention, he wants nothing to do with the mafia. While he meets many new friends throughout his journey who eventually join ranks with him to become his "mafia family," there are of course people who want to see him dead so they can take his place.

The story, while very unique as you don\'t see too many mafia-based anime shows out there, definitely had more potential than what the final product has showed us so far. The big reason that I state this is that there is a bunch of episodes, while not fillers, can be seen as stand-alone comedic episodes that don\'t really have too much of a plot line to them. The episodes that do have a plot, while they are extremely interesting, are unfortunately, go by rather quickly. However, don\'t let that be the reason to stop you from checking this out.

The artwork of Hitman Reborn isn\'t all that bad, but isn\'t anything special or spectacular. Sometimes the animation just seems kind of plain, and many times during a few scenes you\'ll undoubtedly notice how bland it is, but its bearable.

The sound is also on the same degree as the artwork, nothing special, but not disappointing.

I believe what separates Hitman Reborn and makes it special from other shows is its characters. They creators have done an excellent job in creating fresh, very unique and hilarious characters that will have you laughing at their antics in every episode (especially Lambo, who is just too cute). The biggest, and probably the most surprising thing about the characters is how some of them are literally, baby-sized characters. Reborn himself is no bigger than Tsuna\'s head and while this fact may make you stray away from this anime, let me advise that it only helps in the comedy department, because the creators were able to use this aspect so creatively well.

If you\'re looking for a hilarious anime with very unique characters and some interesting fighting, look no further than Hitman Reborn. This anime contains its fair shares of battles, action and romance to go along with the many laughs you\'ll inevitably have.

Katekyoshi Hitman Reborn! is an excellent example of how intriguing shounen manga can be with the right mixture of comedy, action, suspense and the flawless integration of the mafia and fantasy themes. The main protagonist Tsuna, at first glance, seems to have a defeatist attitude and comes off as pathetic, failing about everything, his studies, sports and even romance. Then our reluctant hero meets a mysterious infant hitman called Reborn who is recuited to be Tsuna's tutor because Tsuna is the 10th boss of the Vongola Family, a powerful and influential mafia family to much to Tsuna's dismay!

Story:
The Story is one of the best I ... have come across in a while with the plot initially having large amounts of comedy and stupidity but goes on to include much darker themes later on. The anime starts of slowly introducing each character and establishing the bonds between them. It then goes on to have one the best concepts and plot I have come across. The plot was fairly consistent with the action and comedy sequences that keep the audience entertained and with just the right amount suspense, leaving the audience eager for the next episode. There are well thought out powers and weaponry that Tsuna and his guardians use to face challenges and save the day proving that though the mafia may be considered criminal syndicates but the Vongola are different.

Art:
The art is excellent and the hero looks extremely cool while defeating villains. The equipment and weapons, pets, clothing and characters are well planned, well drawn and unique. I especially loved the Vongola Coat of Arms and Tsuna drawn in Hyper Dying Will Mode. Unlike most shounen manga, The character's clothing changes which is a fact that I love! Even the irritating underwear scene had him don a different pair each time...Though he does have the tyipcal shounen hero's orange color scheme, a popular trend with shonen manga. (I refer to Naurto and Goku's clothing and Ichigo's hair)

Sound:
The openings and the endings were quite good. I failed to notice any character specific battle music which is a change from normal anime which has music for each character. Tthe music is subtle and suitable to the situation and does not overwhelm the senses and distract. Tsuna's seiyu does an excellent job and Tsuna's voice in HDWM is slightly more mature than normal.

Character:
The characters are well developed and realistic and the hero forms a buffer between egos that may otherwise clash, a valuble leadership skill. Tsuna dislikes vilence but once provoked is a deadly force top be reckoned with. Gokudera with his Zeal, Yamamoto and his calm and laid back nature, Ryohei and his Passionate, Kyoya with his Aflooness, Lambo and his Cowardice and Mukuro and his claim to have a personal agenda is understood and is held together by Tsuna who forms the "glue" that holds his guardians together.

Enjoyment:
Negative points:
I have enjoyed every episode. Though there were things that annoyed me.
1. Tha actual plot starts after 20 episodes.
2.The lead is irritating for the first 20 episodes with his dying will underwear scenes! I must say it was extremely funny but watching the same sequence for over 20 episodes makes you annoyed at Tsuna! I do not understand the point of it. Tsuna goes on to nbecoming super cool later on.
3. The Recap and Omake sections take up too much of the episodes time not to mention recap episodes!!
Despite this, the story arcs are well connected and the balance between action and comedy well maintained.


I strongly recommend this series to shounen fans!! I give this series a 9/10 and inspite of the drawbacks, it was excellent and entertaining. The plot, characters and art are strong points!

I'll be honest since most of the reviews in my opinion are usually really long and I end up generally skim-reading it so in light of that ill try to make mine as short and concise as I can.

Let me just start of by saying I give the anime an overall of 10. My total experience left me completely satisfied although I wish the anime and manga continued since the ending was a bit blunt, however due to financial reasons on the companies behalf I understand that it didn't meet the funds required.

Moving on, the story and characters were a solid 9 for ... me since I (***really slight spoilers***) found the idea of the ring aspect, 10 year bazooka, and future ark really cool entirely. Especially the few plot twists that actually surprised me occasionally here and there. The character development on a few characters are a bit poor I will admit, but some characters like Gokudera and the Arcobalenos i really enjoyed knowing their origin and how everything happened.

Next we have the art and soundtrack, both I would give both of them around an 8 since it was made between 2007-2011 for that year and time, especially with their budget i'd say was pretty enjoyable since I harbored no complaints and there weren't any sudden drops in quality. I personally was indifferent about my opinion on the outro but op's were really catchy and I did enjoy them.

I'd definitely recommend this to people who enjoy some comedy, action, shounen or any of the above. While Tsuna is an annoying wimpy crybaby at the start believe me when I say he gets alot cooler later on. I think its widely known that the first 19-20 episodes can be basically considered filler, I did watch them but on two times speed because I wanted a basic grasp on the characters. I'll also add that the story gets genuinely interesting after those 20 first episode and then by around episode 80 you'll be 100% attached like I was.

When i first came across KHR, it was a toss up against Gintama. I watched the first episode of KHR and was put off by Tsuna's underwear mode thing, thinking it was completely ridiculous and stupid. So then i chose to watch Gintama instead, however, i'm SO glad that i did come back to KHR eventually, or else i would have missed out on such an AMAZING anime. After episode 20 or so, i found myself completely hooked, i probably even loved the underwear mode by then.

Story - 9/10
Once the real storyline kicks off, KHR turns into something amazing and unique. ... At first glance, the mafia based story put together with superhuman babies may seem a disaster but the plot eventually becomes something far from that and everything just seems to fit into place. The only reason why i would not give it a full 10/10 is because (as mentioned before) it takes a long time for the real storyline to kick in, but if you pull through the first 20 episodes, you'll definitely find yourself addicted and watching episode after episode. On top of that, KHR has considerably less fillers than other shounen anime.

Art - 8/10
The anime begins with bad character art, but as it goes on, the way the characters are drawn do get better. The action scenes were well done to begin with IMO, and they also get even better further into the anime :]. I particularly liked the clothing style of some characters *cough* Gokudera *cough*, scenery wasn't bad although i didn't pay much attention to that, but at least houses looked like houses and trees looked like trees. x]

Sound - 9/10
I loved nearly all the OP and ED themes, they fit the anime really well and got me addicted to Cherryblossom and Masami Mitsuoka's voice. The character's voices fit perfectly and were very unique, although Haru's voice tended to be quite annoying at times with her "dangerous desu!" thing.

Characters - 10/10
I loved all the characters by the time they were all introduced, they all have unique personalities and the amount of support and loyalty they give the protagonist is almost heartwarming. Each character has something unique to them which stands out from the rest of the people Tsuna knows, whether it be a saying or a style, there isn't any two characters who are similar really (unless you count fringe characters...)

Enjoyment - 9/10
By the time i reached episode 40 or so, i found myself watching it non stop, struggling to slow down so i don't catch up so fast. It became one of my top favourite anime by that point, i usually don't judge anime before i finish them/catch up, but this one became an exception by miles. Once you reach the real storyline you'll be completely hooked wanting to know what happens next.

Overall - 10/10
Despite it's flaws at the beginning (taking too long to start, fairly bad animation etc), for me, KHR makes up for it all with its awesome storyline and unique characterisation whilst keeping typical shounen elements for it to be categorised in this area. I'd recommend it to anyone who is looking for a long running shounen anime without having to sift through 50+ episodes to reach the real plot. KHR is definitely an addictive anime worth watching, you'll find yourself waiting for the new episodes to be subbed before you know it. :]

Since Reborn! aired a while back, I doubt anyone will look at this review, but I shall write it anyway. I watched this the beginning of this year, but I never got the guts to submit a review, he he. ;')
Here we have Sawada Tsunayoshi, a middle school student, who by not much luck, is nicknamed 'Loser Tsuna' by all his classmates, assumed to be a failure due to the fact that he's not good at anything. Now, all that may change when he meets the obscure, mafia hitman, Reborn!
WARNING: THE FIRST 20 EPISODES WILL MAKE YOU WANT TO DROP THE SHOW, BUT DON'T, JUST ... DON'T.
Story: 8
There have been many Mafia animes, and still some are coming up, but what I liked about Reborn! was that it puts its own twist on things. The first 20 episodes are basically like 'daily life' episodes and may make you want to drop it, but don't. I promise you you'll regret it. I dropped it after the first 13 episodes until my brother told me "Don't drop it, it'll get so good after so don't drop it." And I'm glad I continued to watch it. After the first 20 episodes you'll get an action-packed, adventured filled, expedition, I promise you.
Art: 7
Because this is a slightly old shounen, it wasn't in HD when it aired, and the art style was past decent but it wasn't fantastic if you understand what I'm getting at. It does later on get way better quality, so I wouldn't worry very much about the art.
Sound: 10
Aside from the story line, this is where Reborn! DOMINATES. The openings and endings are some of my all time favorite songs. You will not be disappointed at all with the soundtrack. The sounds with the fights and the voices are all very good quality too.
Character: 9
The character development here, in my opinion, was fantastic! But i can't say how without giving out spoilers so, I'm sorry. Just take my word for it.
Enjoyment:10
It's a really funny series to watch, I fell off my bed once to how much I laughed and I cried when I got to the end of this series. Not because of the ending itself simply because you get so attached to the characters, you just love them. I wanted more, but I never got it. *tear*
(I feel like overall and enjoyment are like the same fricking thing, but whatever ;') )
Overall: 10
Overall, Katekyo Hitman Reborn! was a rollercoaster of an anime that I will never forget. Just give it a shot. Its 203 episodes worth watching. Don't overlook it if you ever come across it. When I got the average of my scores, it was a 9, but I added the extra point because I just loved this serious too much to not call it a masterpiece.

So... I never thought about reviewing or something but I'm reading so many prejudices about this really great anime lately, so I really have to review it. My English is bad as hell, don't mind it.

Story: 10
If you've watched the first episode of Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, you're certainly thinking "What the hell." Well, you're not alone. At first glance, the plot may sound ridiculous. The first 20 episodes don't have anything to do with the rest of the story, it may get boring at first and you don't want to watch it because it's just farcical since it doesn't have anything to do with the ... "real" mafia (don't get it wrong, the episodes are funny, though). But if you keep up and watch the episodes, you may think this is the best plot ever. You won't find another storyline like this outside.

Art: 9
Well, I really like the art. The animations are smooth & conclusive, the fighting scenes as well and the characters are well done, too. Sometimes, I really think the characters look f*cking (Pardon my French) badass and accordingly they really look like Bishounen. I hear fangirl-screams in my head. Duh.

Sound: 8
I really think the openings and endings are well done. Some of them stuck in my brain for about two weeks and won't vanish. The OSTs & sound-effects fit every situation and the seiyuus did a very good job. I have to say, it's nothing outstanding.

Character: 10
You won't find many different, outstanding and unique personalities like in Katekyo Hitman Reborn. They mature in every episode. But the character I admire the most has to be Tsuna. He's just hopeless, so he really stands out of all shounen-heroes I know since now. But still, he has real friends who accept him just the way he is. I think he's the character who matures the most out of this anime.

Enjoyment / Overall: 10
I really enjoyed this series. I was sad when it ended because I got really addicted to this anime and I hadn't anything to watch anymore since then. If you should ever start watching this anime, don't let yourself be fooled! The first twenty episodes may look ridiculous but since it's only twenty, it's not the end of the world. ;D
I'd recommend this anime to everyone who likes shounen with a lot of comedy and an unique background story.

Ciaossu.

Today we will be taking a look at Hitman Reborn, which was not quite as popular as some other shounen jump titles and it was sort of forgotten a while after it ended.

This is a spoiler free review.

*Story*

The story centers around Sawada Tsunayoshi, an unpopular Japanese junior high-schooler who's one day forced by an Italian baby and his shape shifting pet chameleon (I don't know, just roll with it), to train and become the next head of a certain Mafia called the 'Vongola family'.

First off, you wouldn't expect a shonen anime (which is mainly aimed at kids) to contain a subject matter such ... as Mafias, would you? And that's why the term 'Mafia' in this series is very loosely connected to the real world definition of it. Are they involved in pedaling drugs? Prostitution? Wait, do they even break the law? For what purpose do they organize exactly? The answer to the last question is not very satisfying, as you can imagine. They're just presented as organizations with strong people in them that fight other such groups. It seems to me, this term is used mainly to sound exotic for a Japanese audience. So from the get go, this makes the story feel almost aimless, besides Tsuna becoming a 'Boss' of a Maifa with no clear purpose, aside from fighting other Mafias. I don't think the author thought this idea entirely through.

In the first 20 episodes the story sets out to introduce the characters through episodic comedy with little to no action in them. In this sense, it's different from the usual battle shonen and it might turn some people off immediately. Bleach (a series I'm not too fond of) also used its first 20 or so episodes for a similar goal, but did it through monster of the week with plenty of action. So I guess I should applaud Reborn for being different and taking certain risks. Even though, I'd personally prefer action, honestly.

After its introduction episodes, Reborn goes on a route that's within the boundaries of the shonen tradition and starts its actual story through various arcs. The first arc was a pretty small scale battle against some street gang and it didn't last very long, but it did manage to spark my interest in what's to come. The second arc was a battle against another branch within the same family, which was a decent arc, but it lasted longer than it needed to.

The pacing in this series becomes especially slow in the third arc that's actually a saga which ended up taking most of the duration of the show and contained fillers within that saga. Granted there weren't that many fillers, but some weren't even action oriented and actually contained more episodic comedy. Meaning, the introduction episodes come back to haunt us later in the series.

The story itself, is pretty basic shonen stuff, but despite having no clear end goal it did manage to throw in twists along the way that kept me interested. It wasn't mind blowing or anything, but it did use its own plot elements and the side stories it threw in surprisingly well.

Unfortunately, the end of this big saga is also the end of the series and it left things open. Though I haven't read the manga, I've heard that nobody liked where it ended and that the upcoming arc was pretty bad anyways. So I guess it might as well have ended there.

*Characters*

Tsuna, the main character has a good heart, but is basically a spineless individual who's in need to become stronger. This also demonstrates how the author wanted to do something different from the usual shonen. You see, in most long running shonen we already get a character who's fully developed to what is necessary for a shonen protagonist. They're strong willed, positive and never run away from a fight (Goku, Luffy, Naruto, etc').. So all that's left for them to develop, is their physical strength, not their personality. In this case however, the protagonist needs to strengthen his personality, adapt to the Mafia life style and become skilled in battle. This is excellent, and it also distracts you from the fact that the story doesn't have much of a goal beyond that.

Unlike the main character, the rest of the cast don't develop and are your basic two dimensional shonen characters with very silly quirks…. But! They are also very likable and their chemistry together is quite good. The thing that seems to be consistent among them is that they all take their personality quirk or hobby to an extreme. For example, Gokudera will protect Tsuna to the death if necessary, Hibari will discipline his school mates by any means , Yamamoto will always be the positive moral booster no matter what, etc, etc. This might sound cheap but this is exactly what makes them so well defined and fun to watch interact.
Even a lot of the villains have somewhat interesting quirks and personalities as well..

After the introduction episodes though the amount of comedy in the series drops significantly until there's almost none at all and there was very little use for the characters' quirks from a point on. The tone of the show changes completely in the big saga and it obviously didn't know how to balance it out. This shift in tone becomes especially noticeable when the episodic comedy fillers come back later in the series in the middle of the saga, reminding you of what the show used to be like.

Another thing about the rest of the cast, despite being very quirky (and having interesting and funny quirks, not half assed ones) none of them seemed to get a proper backstory, with one exception being the fans favorite, Gokudera (admittedly, he's also my favorite). Don't get me wrong they all have some sort of background, but none of them get an entire episode flashback of a tragic backstory dedicated to them, if I recall (you may correct me if I'm wrong here, it's been a few years since I've watched it), which is strange since nobody in the cast seems to be more important than someone else as far the story is concerned.

In addition, much like in Bleach, the amount of characters start to pile up from a point on and it feels like there were way too many for the show to handle. This is problematic, but I don't think it was handled that badly, all things considered.

All in all the characters are kinda like characters out of a Saturday morning cartoon (which is what Reborn is, in Japan, heh heh) and I don't mean that as an insult, it's actually interesting to have such silly characters in a semi serious story. It's too bad their lighthearted nature wasn't fully and consistently present and that most lack any kind of depth.

*Art*

The character designs demonstrate that this is a female mangaka more than anything else. Every male character looks like a super model. The designs style is somewhat original though, since I immediately recognized it on a cover of a completely different anime (Psycho-Pass). So I guess it's not that bad.

The animation though is pretty simplistic and despite being an action anime there isn't all that much action to look forward to either. There are decent battles in it, sure, but not that many. And most of them aren't that great. You can even go back more than 20 years and find better battles in both DBZ and Yu Yu Hakusho, to be perfectly honest (both in quantity and quality).

Not to mention, In the last quarter of the series, the fighting's style changes into… something else that I can't reveal, because spoilers… But it will depend entirely on your preference whether you like that change or not.

*Sound*

I don't know Japanese, but I think the voice acting is quite good with a bunch of distinct and funny voices that fit quite perfectly with the characters.

The sound effects are pretty basic though and the soundtrack is ok, I guess, but it isn't the most memorable one, despite being used throughout 200 episodes. Some of the tracks sound a little like Rocky knock offs as well.

The opening and ending songs are mostly pop songs and boy bands. Granted, some are decent, but others take Engrish to levels that make it sound completely retarded. So this might be distracting and/or hilarious, assuming you speak English.

*Enjoyment*

I did enjoy it for its characters, but I was watching it while it was airing, so the terribly slow pacing really got to me at points. Especially since there were a lot of (canon) episodes where almost nothing happened.

*Overall* 6/10

Heck, maybe this score is a little generous considering how much I trashed it, mainly since I still kinda liked it somehow.
If there's one thing you should know about Reborn is that it's definitely not soulless. There are certainly much better shonen out there, but there's also much worse, in my humble opinion. And I'm sure the author really was trying her best.

Thanks for reading.

My first impression of Hitman Reborn is that it is a very annoying anime. There are 3 little kid characters in the anime that have voices that are so high pitched and irritating. Imagine hearing those sounds on your noise cancellation earphones. But i was soon to be proven wrong.

Story
The story progresses quite slowly in the beginning 10-15 episodes. The first part of the series shows the relationship between Reborn and the protaganist, Tsuna. And it also gives an idea on the training that Tsuna will go through later in the series. These are mainly repetitive and give us a feeling of lame fillers. However, ... i must urge you to bear with the first few episodes and continue on. Because later on in the series (when Tsuna and pals begin their training), will the real story begin. The real story includes boss fights and show how bonds later in the arc are formed, and make for me a very interesting watch. Later on will be a few more filler episodes, then towards the next arc - which has yet to complete its airing - but promises to not disappoint.

Art
Many of the characters in the series are 'babies' or kids, so the art tends toward chibi styled characters. For the rest of the characters, the art is quite simple but very likable.

Sound
Nothing much to be said in this section, but the first op was nothing to rave about. But the second and third op were much better, and so were the ending songs.

Character
The series follow through the experiences of the main protagonist. And it shows how he grows from a friendless useless boy to one with a 'family' and a will to protect them. Later in the series, the irritating kids i referred to in the beginning prove themselves useful and become likable characters. Tsuna (main character) is developed very well in this series, but i must express my disappointment that other characters are not developed that well yet. Especially Hibari and Yamamoto. However, this may be due to the series not having been completed, and we may see more of their development in the future.

Enjoyment
Aside from being slightly annoyed in the beginning of the episode, i feel that the main arcs of the story were very enjoyable. I do not encourage forwarding of episodes, or skipping episodes, but for the bulk of the first few episodes you may choose to do so.

Overall
I liked this anime quite a lot. It is not my favorite anime out there, but I most certainly did not regret picking up this series.

This series was initially shown to me by a friend. While the first episode was quite...interesting, I soon became hooked to this series.

Story: I think that the plot line was very unique. Compared to other series, Katekyo Hitman Reborn takes a nicer outlook on the mafia, and glances over the darker portions of it. While this may be both good/bad, the different outlook helped to build an interesting plot centered around the main character.

The anime took a long time to start up (I enjoy anime like Darker than Black), but once the action started it had me hooked. ... I personally do not enjoy watching gag/comedy series, and as such the daily life arc was rather boring. Even so, I would rate the overall plot a 10/10 because of how the plot escalates and twists as the series moves on.

Art: Compared to the manga, the anime's art is much neater and nicely drawn. Although there are few moments (Gowadera) that the art is a little...off, the art was very nicely done. As the series progressed, the art level improved, and by the end of this series it was great.

Sound: The soundtracks and OPs are great. The soundtracks were able to bring out the mood of the scenes very well, and the character songs are also very fitting.

Character: The characters in this series are simply amazing. Every character has a unique personality, one that fit both the gag portion and the action portion very well.

Enjoyment: Aside from the first few episodes, I loved the series. The plot and the arcs were nicely crafted, ones that could hold a viewer's attention for long periods of time.

Overall I rate this series a 10/10.

Rarely are you fortunate enough to find an anime that truly brings you into their world and keeps you on edge throughout a 200+ episode series; Katekyo Hitman Reborn seemed to do the trick for me.

The story revolves around a loser of a middle schooler, Tsuna, who is bad at everything and has little friends. One day, a baby home tutor suddenly shows up at his door and informs him that he is a candidate for the boss of the strongest mafia that exists: The Vongola. That is where the fun begins, as Tsuna begins to learn new moves to commence in battle and ... forms precious bonds with new friends that eventually end up playing a huge part in his mafia. There are many arcs throughout the series, and as the series progresses, Tsuna and his friends battle stronger and stronger enemies that become allies later on. KHR contains many mysteries that end up unraveling in a way you would never expect; this includes the reason Tsuna’s home tutor is a baby, what happened to the first Vongola mafia boss, and much more to fill your heart’s content.

The storyline was well thought out, with a very unique plot that sets it apart from your average action anime. I was kept guessing the whole time, and found myself thinking about the show first thing when I woke up. The action scenes were amazing as well; the characters always pull out new tricks that you would never expect. In addition, Katekyo Hitman Reborn portrays a fascinating cast of characters that are both original as well as lovable and really start to grow on you as the series progresses. I found myself crying in certain parts seeing how much the characters have grown, which is a rare occurrence for me. Each person has their own little perks that make you love them more. Comedy also plays a huge part in the anime, and there are some hilarious filler episodes that really calm me down after a high tension fight scene. The comedic scenes are really what make KHR such a memorable anime in the end, which is also what makes the fillers much more enjoyable than the ones in Bleach and Naruto.

It was hard to find critiques for the show, as KHR is one of my all-time favorites. I did find the show to lack some seriousness, as deceased characters always come back to life, box animals in arc 3 seem very childish etc. This would probably help the show target a wider range of audiences if improved, typically those 16 and older. The first 20 episodes also lack plot, but keep persevering as the show has some pleasant surprises in store later in the story. All in all, KHR is definitely an anime you should try out if you’re into a good action/supernatural/comedy/shounen!

If you want to watch something that’s striking right from the beginning, you might not like Katekyo Hitman Reborn!

At least I know I did not enjoy it the first time.

First episodes make absolutely no sense. Even if the characters explain what is happening, you will stare at the screen saying “is this FOR REAL? what was the author THINKING?” a LOT of times. I did, but let me tell you something: after a few episodes of comedy, weird characters and ridiculous storyline, you somehow get yourself immersed in the story. How? Keep reading.

Story: Katekyo Hitman Reborn is a shonen, but it is not your typical ... shonen. The story is certainly different from any shonen you have watched yet: a teen —who is apparently not good at anything— is chosen as the Vongola Family’s (a Mafia) Boss and a baby (who happens to be a mafioso) gets to tutor him. Our hero, Tsunayoshi Sawada, HATES everything that is part of the Mafia: the guns, the fights, the danger and is not really much of a mafioso himself: he is wimpy, lacks self-esteem and even courage. Yeah, very ridiculous. In fact, I dropped this anime three times because I couldn’t bare watching it though I regretted it as soon as the action started. The writers somehow found a way to explain everything that didn’t make sense as the story kept advancing. It gets better with each arc and so does the manga. Weapons, animal companions, flames... This anime has what you could ask for in a shonen for great battles.

Characters: From the beginning, the anime is focused on introducing each character. There are a lot of characters but since the story is a bit slow paced, you get to differentiate them easily. The characters all seem to go through great character development (especially our hero -which starts from being a coward to slowly developed courage and great resolve-), each of them have theme songs that play when they appear on the screen, each of them is different and strong in their way. There is really a variety of characters, they are colorful, their personalities are well defined and they act accordingly. I guess that one of the most remarkable things about this anime is how well the characters are written and thought of.

Music/Sound: As I mentioned above, throughout the anime, each character had their theme song (for example, whenever Hibari entered the room or met Tsuna, a theme song would play or sometimes when Tsuna got into his Hyper Dying Will Mode a theme song would also play) which honestly, I thought was pretty cool. The openings, in my opinion, sound like typical shonen songs so I loved them and so happened with the endings. I don’t think there was a single bad or unfitting song in this anime, all of them according to every moment and character.

Art/Animation: From the start, the animation was one of the most average things about this anime. I didn’t like it. I don’t know how but without noticing (really, I didn’t notice) the animation got pretty good. Even if some fights, due to their nature, are “dark”, the animation remains colorful and that’s one of the things that I definitely liked about the animation.

Enjoyment: If you like comedy and you don’t watch it with a critical eye, you will certainly enjoy this anime right from the beginning. If you are looking at something serious, you might get bored (as I did). This is definitely an anime that to truly enjoy it, you have to sit back and stop trying to understand it.

Overall: Katekyo Hitman Reborn! has been my favorite anime for a while, I wouldn’t say it is the best anime I have watched but there is something about how I fell for the characters, the music, the fights, the arcs... It was all put down together and it gave me some laughs aside from a few tears it got from me. This anime isn’t a 10 (especially by how slow paced it gets between arcs = fillers), but it is one of the best shounen there is.

I am sure that if you decide to give this anime an opportunity, you won’t regret watching it.

Never judge a book by its cover. The first time I watched this anime, I only saw about three or so minutes of the first episode before I gave up on it. Yes, the reason was partly to do with the animation of Reborn, I was like o_0 before deciding not to watch it... After a period of time, I decided to give it a try again after one of my friends watched it and recommended it. The 180+ episodes was daunting as I settled down to actually watch anime and see why it was so popular.

Nineteen episodes later I was wondering why I ... was still watching it, the main character was a total let down, Tsuna's wimpy personality really turned me off. I really considered dropping it again, but then the next episode came on, and finally something interesting happens. It was all uphill from there and I /loved/ it.

Story (7/10) - Be warned, if you're looking for an anime with actual mafia fighting and stuff in it, this probably isn't what you want. This anime is more humour/friendship/a tad bit fantastical. There's not much gang/mafia/crimminal related activities going on, and if so it's sort of more light-hearted. You wouldn't take it seriously.

I won't bore you with a summary, there's already one which sufficiently describes the main gist of it without spoiling the anime. Like a lot of animes which have been going on for a while (eg. Bleach, Naruto), the plot is slow-moving. The fight scenes are long and drawn out, and sometimes I find myself skipping ahead only to find I haven't missed that much after all.

The story is so-and-so. There are some arcs I like, and some, well, not so much. Thankfully, unlike Bleach and Naruto, KHR doesn't have as many filler arcs, and on the occasion, there's usually one or two fillers in between arcs before the story dives right into the plotline again. What shocked me the most, however is that the two filler arcs are my favourite out of the whole thing! They were enjoyable and interesting, unlike most fillers and I didn't even know they were fillers until I looked up some episode information. They were /that/ good. Plus, it was interesting seeing the first Vongola family.

Art (8/10) - Is well drawn, the guys are gorgeous (especially Tsuna in Dying Will mode *drool* and Giotto) There's not much I can critique about the art really, I've seen better definitely, but it is good enough to satisfy me. One thing which takes a while to get used to is Reborn however due to the style, but you get used to it.

Sound (7/10) - I didn't really like the voice actor for Tsuna... especially when he started to whine, it really grated on my nerves. But all in all, once I got used to that everything else was fine. The soundtrack is pretty awesome and I love the current opening theme "Listen to the Stereo".

Character (9/10) - KHR has a large, very unique cast. Each character has his/her own back story and I really liked the character development of all the characters, most specifically Tsuna. Wimpy personality aside, he is a very instersting character and he grows and matures a lot as the story progresses. Tsuna may be a wimp, but he has a kind heart and would do anything to protect his friends. It is really interesting to watch how he changes the characters around him change as they interact with him and he doesn't even realise it!

Enjoyment (9/10) - The only two reasons this isn't getting a 10 is because I hate the pace of the show, it's too drawn out and you get bored of it. The episode recaps are annoying as well, they take about five whole minutes to recap what happened previously. That's about a fifth of the episode gone already! Grr

Overall (8/10) - I give it a 'very good'. Definitely worth watching if you enjoy shounen animes and have the time to. At currently 200 episodes, it is a little daunting to start, but once you start getting into it you hardly notice.

Enjoy,
-animeangel105

Now here's a shounen with class.

Katekyo Hitman Reborn! is the adaption of Akira Amano's popular manga series of the same name that ran from 2004 to 2012 for a total of eight years. The anime ended prematurely, and it's unknown whether or not it will continue. However it ended in a good spot as a big arc had been just resolved. So if you're worried about it ending on a cliffhanger, you have nothing to worry about.

Anyway, the story. The story starts out with Tsunayoshi Sawada finding out he is to be the 10th boss of the Vongola Mafia, or as they call mafias in ... the anime, "families", so the Vongola Family. He is also to be tutored by the Vongola hitman Reborn (Hence the title) so he can become a proper mafia boss. Of course, "Loser Tsuna" doesn't want to be one as he's just a middle school student with no interest in the mafia. The premise doesn't sound too interesting, and really the story never is as serious as it sounds, even during its most serious arc that starts in the 70's. You figure this out right away when you first start the show. Speaking of starting...

One of the main issues people have with the show is the first 20 or so episodes. This follows a Daily Life arc, involving characters doing funny and stupid things. You even have a character training by dodging baseballs being shot out of a tank on school grounds. While this sounds good, people will just want to get on with the plot, instead of just the show being very episodic. Many of these episodes are not to be skipped however as they introduce some characters that become much more important later on, and you miss various developments.

This will be an uphill battle for most, but believe me when I say things get much better after you get past these episodes. Things soon start becoming a little more serious, and you really start getting more and more plot and character development. Not to mention they step up with the animation and soundtrack.

The soundtrack at the beginning of the series doesn't have really any special tracks. They fit the mood well during the daily life arc, but you'll be left wanting more. Fortunately the series during the arcs that come after the first one have far more interesting tracks, and it helps the show become more engaging. The soundtrack will fit each mood perfectly.

The animation and artwork isn't that great either at the beginning, but Artland eventually steps things up more come halfway through the show.

Now back to the story, during its first "serious" arc, the Varia arc, it follows some of the typical stuff you find in shounen (Ex: Tournament style fights, various special moves being revealed, opponents going "Impossible! There's no way this can be!"), but where the show starts to shine is the characters. You learn what they've gone through, what they're willing to sacrifice just for their friends' safety and a tomorrow where they can laugh all they want without a care in the world, among other things. While this sounds like all the various shounen you've probably watched in the past, it ends up doing more than most, especially with the relationships of the characters. I have not seen many shows do what this show has done with the relationships of the main characters, and it actually ends up caring a lot about them. It develops all of them, and continues to do so the entire time. You really get just how real and strong their relationship is, and what they'll do to maintain it.

One big problem I have with the story is the issue of time travel. Come halfway through the show, the show has an arc that uses time travel. It ends up unfortunately greatly testing the established theories of this, and even throws parallel universes in there. For this reason, I cannot justify giving the story a higher score, it just ends up being that messy in this area, and brings down what was already established in the previous episodes. Another reason why I can't justify giving it a higher score, the pacing. While the show past episode 20 has all around good pacing, the arc involving time travel is where the series met the same fate as many other long-running shounens, it caught up to the manga, and as a result they had to do something to allow the manga to get farther. Instead of going for filler episodes, Artland decided to just stretch episodes out far longer, and this results in some of the slowest pacing I've ever seen in a shounen for quite a while.

Speaking of filler, eventually they decide to put in filler episodes, and while this sounds bad, it actually was for the better. The show involves two short filler arcs that were actually written by Akira Amano herself, and something rather surprising about them is they actually ADD to the story and characters, and CANNOT be skipped. They actually are filler episodes that are truly worth watching. Even after the arcs are done, the show continues to reference them.

I can only hope more series try to do what Katekyo Hitman Reborn! did when it comes to the characters, and filler episodes. It manages to succeed where others failed.

This is truly a shounen that manages to stand out from the others.

Trust me, after watching 5 episodes of this anime, I dropped it, simply because the storyline up to that point was so boring that it feels better to watch a piece of rock than watching this anime. But, after continuous ‘suggestions’ from my friends, I decided to watch katekyo hitman reborn again and oh boy, I never regret watching a single episode!
(The first 20+ episodes were design to make you drop the anime. But, If you manage to endure the 20+ episodes, congratulations! The real fun starts there!)
Unlike typical shonen animes out there, katekyo hitman reborn has no sudden power up from being ... emotional or whatnot, or the typical ‘always win’ protagonist. However, what keeps the show interesting is the coolness portrayed by the characters in this anime. Another reason why this anime is interesting is the character development. The characters are developed in a realistic time frame. A fine example would be the main protagonist. As you watch the anime, you will realize that he developed greatly, from someone who is reluctant to do anything to someone who would do anything to protect his friends. But there are flaws in the character development though, especially some of the female characters in the show as in the entire series, they show little or no character development at all.
So if you’re looking for a shonen anime to enjoy with cool characters and no huge boobs or whatnot that bounces out of nowhere, katekyo hitman reborn is for you!
Rating:
Story: 8/10
Art: 8/10
Character: 9/10
Sound: 10/10 (You will definitely love the OP and ED)
Enjoyment: 10/10
Overall: 10/10

Katekyo Hitman Reborn is a comedy/shounen/ action anime, told from the view of a male, middle-school student named Tsunayoshi Sawada. The series is almost, if not completely told from his point of view, (I fail to remember any time it wasn't.) and did fit moderately well together. It wasn't completely consistent, as there were some random, filler episodes popping up every now and then mainly for comedic purposes, but it didn't stray too far from the original plot and for the most part amusing, so nothing I would harp about. I have to say, what made this series one of the most interesting was its ... originality. An infant (emphasis on infant) named Reborn, who is supposedly the most famous hitman on the planet (the anime failed to elaborate more on Reborn's past, unfortunately, but again, nothing I would harp about) suddenly shows up to Tsunayoshi's house, tells the boy he was there to tutor him (and quite the arduous task, as the child legitimately failed at everything.) and throws him into a hell of training, later revealing that this meek, pathetic child was to become a mafia boss. It is not an OVERLY complex story. It does get a bit complicated, especially involving the family matters (mafia family, mind you) but not exactly rocket science. Far from it, actually. Really, most people shouldn't have a problem whereas understanding the plot is concerned. Pacing was, in terms of plot advancement, VERY slow in the beginning, which is probably what kept the anime from getting the recognition it deserved. However, as things got on (third, fourth arc or so) there were little or no problems. Another thing I liked was that it can quite unpredictable at times. Predictable sometimes, but many times unpredictable. There are crazy plot twists that absolutely no one could anticipate (unless they had read the manga), which is very good, especially in Shounen anime, which tend to be repetitive and predictable. These plot twists were rather exciting for me. The show portrayed comedy pretty well. I laughed a good many times through the show, and found most of it very amusing, but there were some that seemed, put very bluntly, awkward. And in some cases, even slightly annoying. Of course, the anime wouldn't have been nearly as good as it was without this humor, so I'll take the good as well as the bad. The ending was... somewhat satisfying. Not abrupt at all, but there were a few mysteries that the anime never solved, and ended in a scenario that left you wondering what would have happened if the series continues, but it wasn't too bad. These mysteries were solved in the manga, so if it is ever animated (something I doubt, after such a period of time, unfortunately) there would be no problems. :D The ending wasn't great, but it wasn't bad either. That's really all I can say about it.

One thing that sets this apart from typical shounen was... it wasn't your typical shounen. There WERE friendship themes, undeniably. However, instead of win win win for the sake of your comrades, as many shounen are, in Katekyo Hitman Reborn, there ARE losses. For the most part, not losses losses, but they actually sacrificed for each other instead of powering up insanely at the thought of their friends. Granted, it did happen, but never did it seem forced or typical. It was actually touching to see.

The art in Katekyo Hitman Reborn was standard, if not slightly higher. Nothing spectacular, but it did its job and didn't bring the series down. For me, it was memorable. I have never seen this particular style in any series before, and, though there is nothing remarkable, I quite liked it. I VERY much like how the characters look, easy to distinguish and... well, the characters look cute walking around town but seriously epic in a battle. They all have their own serious expressions and their normal, ones, unique to their personalities, which gave the story a good mood. The animation however, was very, very good. No complaints. They were smooth, dramatic (sometimes a bit too
dramatic, but makes things a bit more exciting for some people) and just plain fun to watch, especially the battles. You get a clear idea of what's going on, which is one of the key points to truly being able to enjoy such scenes. The quality of the art DID get better throughout the series. Not drastically better, but the change is noticeable. I noticed next to nothing as far as the animation department goes, but it was already good so I have no complaints.

Sound was very good. The anime had great soundtracks and background music, which did their job for the scenario nicely. It's not AMAZINGLY great, but great nonetheless. I LOVED the openings for the most part, especially the second and third. Actually, there were rather few that I DIDN'T like. Either way, the openings were great. The endings, however, were very... skippable. Not bad, but not attention catching. Not very memorable at all. The seiyuus did their job VERY well. For the most part, the characters in Katekyo Hitman Reborn were.... eccentric. There were so many scenes that required drastic emotion and gusto to pull off, yet their did their jobs so plainly well. It just seemed natural and was very fitting for the anime. I have absolutely no complaints.

One of the things that made this series so amazingly lovable, were its lovable characters. There ARE good number of characters for the show, but every single one was memorable. Each and every character served a kind of purpose or role, no one unnecessary. They were all so different, and fun to watch. The way they interacted was just so realistic. The characters were consistent, and showed significant development throughout the series. Appearances and voices fit them very well. They were well-rounded, each with their own set of weaknesses and strengths. I really did fall in love with all of them, and even the enemies were just so memorable. They all reacted to their situations as their personalities would have. As far as the characters go, I had no problems at all.

I enjoyed this VERY much. It is a personal favorite and I remember I dearly, even considering rewatchng all 203 episodes. I laughed, cried, grinned like a fool... it could be rather touching at times. And, I have to admit, I was disheartened when I finished. After I read the manga (which you will be driven to do after you're done) I was even more disheartened, as there were many things that happened in the manga that SHOULD be animated. But alas, low chance after so many years. Put very simply, I ADORED this series.

Overall, I loved it. I LOVE it. The only thing that kept me from giving this a 10, was the random filler and awkward beginning. Thing is, with this series, you have to be patient. Though the first 30 or so episodes show little plot development, you really shouldn't skip it. Even without the plot development, there IS character development, there IS bonding between the characters, and unless you tough out the first 30, you most likely won't be able to grasp how deep their bonds are, what their interactions symbolize later on in the series. It also gives you more time with them by the time it's over, and probably enjoy it even more. So, I wouldn't recommend skipping the first bit, no matter how irritating it can get. (Tsuna's boxer transformation DO cease eventually. I did find this first arc amusing, but these transformations were undeniably irritating.) I would recommend this to any shounen, comedy lover, and even any shounen, so long as they can tough out the first bit because it does get INCREDIBLY good later on, and you'll be happy you didn't miss anything by the time the series is over. I would NOT recommend watching this after the manga, because the anime will seem hellishly slow.

So, this is a very good anime. I hope you found this review helpful and, if you decide to try the anime, find it to your liking.